I'm Still here
by queen of air
Summary: No one seems to notice Kagome. At all. She can yell or jump in front of some one, and its as if she doesn't exist. Is it all just a dream as she thinks? Or is it something more?


"Inuyasha? Why can't you see me?" Kagome asked. "Why can't you hear me?!" She asked frantically. Inuyasha was quickly walking away, looking flustered. He really hadn't heard her and she was right behind him.  
  
'It must be a dream.... Yeah.... That's it... just a dream.... I'll wake up in a minute and everything will be okay....' she thought. She decided to follow the 'dream Inuyasha'.

She walked, almost running to catch up with him and half way tripped over a root and landed on her knees, and didn't feel a thing. 'There's my proof that this is a dream...!'  
  
Kagome followed him in what seemed to be circles. Was he pacing? Actually, he rarely even looked up. When he did, Kagome could see his eyes were red. Did Inuyasha have allergies? Could a dog demon even _have_ allergies?  
  
Maybe she really was dreaming, and the pain in her knee had been from herself, outside the dream, kicking or something and hitting her knee. 'Yeah... that's what happened.....' She thought.  
  
And apparently, in her dream., Inuyasha was allergic to something.  
  
She quit trying to get his attention, knowing it was useless. Maybe she was supposed to just watch and see what happened.  
  
So she did just that. And slowly followed him as he made his way to camp that they had all set up only hours ago.  
  
Miroku was sitting by a low fire, holding his head in his hands.  
  
Was he ill? He was fine when Kagome had gone to the river with Sango earlier that afternoon. He must be ill now then.... It had been over four hours since then.... 'Wait... Slow down Kagome.... It's _just_ a dream. Dream Inuyasha has allergies, and dream Miroku is ill... I wonder where Sango is.....?' She thought.  
  
"Houshi-sama.... Where's Sango?" Inuyasha asked, as if reading Kagome's mind.  
  
"She's in her tent..." He told him, but it sounded as if it hurt him to even speak at all.  
  
'He must be really sick...' Kagome thought.  
  
"Is it safe for her to be alone now?" Inu asked slowly.  
  
"I hope so.... I think she's fallen asleep...." He said, just as slow.  
  
It seemed to Kagome that something bad had happened to make Miroku so ill. Was Sango hurt? The first thing that came to mind for her in this situation, was that something bad had happened, and Sango was injured, and Miroku was sick with worry.  
  
So, dream Inuyasha had allergies, dream Miroku was ill, very ill, and dream Sango was sleeping, and possibly injured. Where was _her_ dream self?  
  
Inuyasha sat down by the fire and stared at the ground. They sat in silence for a long time. And amazingly, Kagome's legs didn't get tired from standing so long... But it _was_ just a dream though....  
  
Maybe both of the guys were kind of ill?  
  
A few moments later, Sango came out of her tent with a sleeping Shippo in her arms and Kilala following behind them.  
  
Sango's eyes were red and blurry and her cheeks were tear stained.  
  
She had been crying? Why? Had they fought Kohaku again? Well... It was all a dream... 'I'm sure they have their reasons for everything...' she thought. ' It _is _a dream, after all....'  
  
Sango walked over to Miroku and sat down next to him. He put his arm around her shoulders and pulled her close so her head rested on his shoulder.  
  
When Sango didn't hit him or pull away, Kagome began to worry. Not even a _dream_ Miroku and a _dream_ Sango had been together in her dreams. She just couldn't ever really see it happening.  
  
"It hurts..." Kagome heard her whisper.  
  
What hurt? Had Sango been physically or emotionally hurt? Kagome couldn't see a wound of any sort. But that didn't mean there wasn't one.  
  
Kagome wondered if any of them could hear her, and decided to test the theory.  
  
"Hello?!" Kagome said. When no one even glanced at her, she continued. "Why can't you hear me!?" She frowned and Shippo's sleeping form twitched his ears and mumbled 'Kagome'.  
  
'Hmm... what was I doing before I fell asleep?' Kagome asked herself. She couldn't remember what she _had_ been doing. She just knew that she was really, _really _tired when she fell asleep.  
  
"It's okay Sango....It'll go away..." Miroku said, trying to soothe her. "Why don't you go and try to sleep some more?" He asked.  
  
"It'll _never_ go away!" Sango said, now crying. She broke away from Miroku's arms and ran to the forest.  
  
Miroku sighed and hid his teary eyed face in his hands.  
  
"Are you going to go after her?" Inu asked.  
  
"We know where she's going... She just needs some time alone." He said quietly.  
  
Inu nodded.  
  
"She thinks it's her fault...because she was there and couldn't stop it." Miroku said. "Just like with Kohaku...."  
  
"It wasn't her fault..." Inuyasha growled.  
  
"We know that. And deep down, I think she does too.... But she still feels it is..."  
  
"She shouldn't." Inuyasha said. "We just have to give her time I think." Inu said, his own eyes growing teary.  
  
Kagome was really starting to wonder what had happened in this dream now... She fully believed it was something horrible. She wouldn't' want to repeat this dream anytime soon.  
  
"Inuyasha... I-I'm sorry... That never should have happened.... It's not your fault." Miroku told him.  
  
"Yes it is..." he growled. "I should have stayed closer...."  
  
Kagome began to remember a little about before she fell asleep. She and Sango had gone down to the river to bathe and Inuyasha had gone to hunt farther away so they had food later. Shippo and Kilala were keeping Miroku from wandering to close to the river. But that was as far as her memory went at the moment.  
  
"Inuyasha... I think we should go get Sango now...Will you come too?" He asked a few minutes later.  
  
He nodded and stood.  
  
Inu and Miroku walked down the path Sango had taken and Kagome followed along behind them.  
  
They walked for what had to have been at least a half hour before they came to a middle-sized clearing.  
  
Sango was sitting off to the edge of the clearing against a tree, with Shippo in her lap and Kilala on her shoulder, all three asleep.  
  
In the center of the clearing was a huge stone. Was it marking something?  
  
Since no one could see her anyways, she walked past them and moved closer to the stone. She could see faint markings on the stone, but couldn't exactly see what it was.  
  
When she got closer she realized it was writing. When she read it, she had to re-read it over again and she touched the engravings as if to make sure it was really there.  
  
It read, 'Here lies Kagome Higurashi; Priestess and treasured friend.'  
  
Kagome couldn't believe it. She fell to her knees in shock. She was .... _dead?_! She couldn't' be dead... How had she died?  
  
Slowly Kagome began to remember more. It was almost as if she was dreaming it and seeing it all from a different point of view.  
  
She and Sango had been bathing and a few elemental demons had showed up. They screamed and Miroku, Shippo and Kilala came running. Inuyasha had been to far a way to hear and it took him awhile to realize what was going on.  
  
One demon attacked Miroku and flung him into a tree and kept him occupied. While another demon flung Sango into a rock wall besides the river, knocking her out.  
  
Shippo and Kilala tried to help, but just couldn't and Kagome was on her own.  
  
By the time Inuyasha got there, Kagome had lost a lot of blood and was still bleeding heavily, Sango and Miroku were unconscious.  
  
"Holy shit! I'm dead!" Kagome said. The guys had long ago left and it was only Sango and Kagome in the clearing now.  
  
Kagome sat down against the huge rock that was her grave stone and closed her eyes, so she could think.   
She must have fallen asleep, because, after a few minutes, when she opened her eyes, she was in an entirely different clearing. She was in the one where Sango and Kohaku had first battled. Sango was sitting on the ground rocking back and forth.  
  
"Sango? Where are we?" Kagome asked, forgetting for the moment that she couldn't hear her.  
  
Kagome was really shocked when Sango answered her. "Kagome? What are you doing here? You're dead..."  
  
"You... heard me...?"  
  
"Yes..." Sango said, looking at her strangely.  
  
Kagome explained how she had followed everyone around all day, no one could hear her, and then she found out she was _dead._ (... What a day...heh..heh)  
  
"We must be in your dreams Sango..." Kagome said, deciding to sit down on the ground in front of her friend.  
  
Sango hugged her fiercely. "Oh Kagome! It's all my fault! I'm so sorry! It's my fault you died... I'm too weak..." She said.  
  
"Shut up Sango! You were thrown into a wall and knocked unconcious... It's not your fault. If it's any ones fault... It's mine..." She said. "Now please don't cry..." Kagome told her.  
  
Sango collected her self and pulled away from Kagome. "What's going to happen now?"  
  
"With me? I don't know... I always thought I'd die and go straight to heaven or the Aleutian fields or something. But i guess I'll be juts hanging around here...as a ghost. Maybe I have unfinished buisness..."  
  
"The jewel... That'd be unfinished buisness... wouldn't it?" Sango said.  
  
Kagome nodded. Maybe after you guys finish it I'll pass on or something... Until then... I'll just stay here and act as your guardian angel... Maybe I can always pass into your dreams...Or if I write on the ground you'll be able to see it... we'll find some way to communicate...I don't know..."  
  
"We miss you Kagome. So much..." Sango said.  
  
"I noticed... Sango! I'm fading! I don't know whats happening!" Kagome said.  
  
"Are you moving on?!" Sango asked quickly. It only seemed like they had a few minutes left to talk.  
  
"I... I think so..! Make sure you tell every one, especially Inuyasha, that I love you all and I'll miss you so much!" Kagome said. Then she faded away into the nothingness that had become Sango's dream.  
  
Sango abruptly was shaken awake by Miroku. "Sango! You were having a dream! It's okay.. Wake up honey!"  
  
Sango sat up and slapped him. "Don't call me honey!"  
  
"I'm glad to see you're feeling better..." He said, rubbing his cheek.  
  
"Sorry... I am feeling better though..." She smiled.  
  
"I'm glad you are... It'll get better... I promise. " He told her.  
  
"I know Miroku... I know." She said smiling as the words 'I'm still here' appeared on the ground. Apparently, Kagome was still here. She just had to leave the dream because Sango was being woken up.  
  
Kagome was there for the group, even though she couldn't be seen, at all times. She did act like a guardian angel, warning them of the dangers she could. Miroku and Inuyasha grew used to having a ghost following them, but Inuyasha never got used to the fact that it was Kagome.  
  
But Kagome was ready, and un-shocked, when they needed to ask Kikyo for help completing the jewel. And she was very happy that Inuyasha didn't even touch her and treated her as just a mere acquaintance, as odd as it was. She was still there.  
  
A/n: Ok... this isn't one of my better fics... but i wrote it a while ago and i just haven't gotten around to typing it... so yeah...it had kinda a bad ending, i know... but i didn't know how else to end it.... the original ending i had was a lot worse...well anywho... if people like it enough.. I'll make a sequel... i already know how I'd work it out.... but yeah... rate reveiw.... blablahblah...


End file.
